What is Aadhar Card – Different Aadhar Card Facilities Provided by UIDAI

Aadhar card and its purpose – A new initiative to give an unique identity to every citizens of India

When you listen to the word ‘Aadhaar’ what’s the first thing that clicks your mind? It means ‘Aap ka Adhikaar’. The word Aadhaar comes from a Hindi word which means ‘foundation’ or ‘base’. It is a 12-digit unique identification number issued by the Indian government to every individual residing in India.

BASIC PURPOSE OF AADHAAR CARD

The basic purpose of this card is to serve as a proof of identity and address, anywhere in India. Each Aadhaar number is unique to an individual and will remain valid for life. Aadhaar number helps you provide access to services like banking, mobile phone connections and other Government and Non-Government services. This card provides an all-round identity infrastructure which can be used by any identification documents like ration card, PAN card, passport, driving license, etc. The Aadhaar card is not replaced by any of these identity-based applications but can only be used as a sole identification proof when applying for other things.

SOMETHING LIKE THE HISTORY

The Aadhar project was initiated as an attempt to have identification for every Individual living legally in India irrespective of the age and gender. In the last twenty years India has gone through a lot in terms of their economic and regulatory structures. Everyone in the rural sector has had very poor access to the finance. The Aadhaar card determines individuals uniquely on the basis of their demographic information and biometrics. This will give them the means to establish their identity to public and private sectors across the country. Since there are a lot of financial limitations, holding an Aadhaar card will help them to address the same. With the help of an Aadhaar card, the poor residents will easily be able to establish their identity with the banks. This in return will help the banks to build up their branch-less banking distribution and reach out to a vast population at a lesser cost.

There are various websites on the net that will help you with different things related to Aadhaar. Some examples are listed below:

Aadhaar Card Website: There is an official website of Aadhaar (card) known as “uidai.gov.in”. It is a website where you can get the latest UIDAI news, press releases and links to other important websites related to Aadhaar card. Also on its homepage you can see some awakening quotes and sketches by the Government to get the basic idea of the steps that they are taking towards the Indian Citizens.

Aadhaar ID card: There is a website which is an extension of the main aadhaar card website. It is known as “resident.uidai.net.in”. This is where you can do n number of things relate to Aadhaar such as:

1) Locate Enrolment Center: Locate your Aadhaar Enrolment Centres and figure out which is the one closest to your home.

2) Book an appointment: You could book an appointment with the Centre through this particular website.

3) Check aadhaar Status: Those of you who have already applied for the Aadhaar card can also check the ‘status’ online by going to “Check aadhaar Status” which will lead you to a page shown below:

You can also check your Aadhaar number (UID) as well as your Enrolment number (EID) on the same website.

4) Aadhaar Link: If you have an existing/opened a bank account linked to your Aadhaar card, then you can check your Aadhaar Linking status.

5) E-Aadhaar download: You can also directly download the E-Aadhaar card within this website.

6) Update aadhaar data: Whatever data you want to update on the aadhaar card you can edit and update the same by following the procedures which will be mentioned to you when you click on “update aadhaar data”. Just read it carefully and it will guide you to your destination.

7) Verify Aadhaar: A very similar page to ‘Check aadhaar linking status’ but of course the purpose is different.

8) Verify Email and Mobile: This happens in most of the cases when your mobile number or Email address is changed and you would want to verify the same. This link will help you verify it.

Although there is almost everything related to Aadhaar that you can find under this website, however there are separate links also for the same.

Aadhaar card didn’t come up just like that. There was a plan, an idea which took years to get executed. Of course in India everything takes place, but late, so did this. The whole idea of launching an Aadhaar card began in 1999 that is about 16 years prior. It all started when there was a Kargil Review Committee by the then Prime Minister Mr. Vajpayee and the corresponding NDA Alliance for reviewing the conditions of National security. One of the main recommendations provided by the head of the committee was to issue ‘Identity Cards’ for the village people living in the affected Border Areas which was later extended for everyone living in the affected border areas. Indirectly this seemed to be like a great idea for the issuance of Aadhaar cards for the Indian citizens.

A couple of years later say in 2001 there were recommendations made for the use of ‘ID cards’. The group that made the recommendation also insisted on ‘Multi-Purpose National Identity Card Project’ which was followed by the Ministry of External Affairs who wanted to make it national and also mandatory. By 2003 a ‘Citizen bill’ was presented in Lok Sabha by L.K. Advani. But none of this was as concrete as what we call today the ‘Aadhaar card’. It was only in 2009 that the Planning Commission of India did the honors and launched the ‘UIDAI’ which is responsible for governing Aadhaar numbers and Aadhaar identification cards.

It was the man himself Shri Nandan Nilekani, Chairman of UIDAI, who did not stop the progress of Aadhaar card and in 2010 launched the logo and the brand name ‘Aadhaar’.

Even though there are debates regarding the importance of Aadhaar but as said by the current Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi he would put in as much effort as he can for the progress of Aadhaar.

About Aashish Srivastava

Aashish Srivastava is passionate about writing and is the editor-in-chief of various websites. A nerd and sentimental pulse, he enjoys music and travelling. A big fan of Sachin Tendulkar . He is a great listener who loves observing people.